The Psychology of Self Harm & Behaviour Course

The Psychology of Self Harm and Behaviour Course
Wednesday 13 May 2009

“The Psychology of Self Harm & Behaviour Course raised awareness of issues and offered strategies for dealing with these.”
Carol Kenny, Queen Mary’s High School

Do you often wonder why….?

ð More young people are getting confused and ‘acting out’?
ð Some children and young people self harm?
ð Some children and young people behave in a particular way and don’t seem to be able to break the habit?
ð Suicide is on the increase amongst young people?
ð Some young people appear to be apathetic?
ð Seemingly very intelligent young people throw their opportunities away and end up mixing with the wrong crowd, getting pregnant or get into debilitating habits like drug taking, alcohol or joining gangs?

This 1 Day Course will cover:
Ö An awareness of the underlying emotional and psychological challenges, patterns and beliefs that might be running young people’s lives.
Ö How our inner world has a major impact on our outer world and the people around us
Ö Letting go of negative emotions
Ö Interpreting Positive intentions relating to self harm behaviour
Ö Possible signs to look out for
Ö How YOU can have a great positive impact on children and the young people that you work with and manage self harm differently
Ö How your communication can make the difference to young people
Ö Tools, strategies for support and change of self harm behaviour

“The Psychology of Self Harm & Behaviour Course helped me to feel inspired again! It reinforced what my role is and how I can make a positive difference. It was great that you shared your experience with us, which added credence and authenticity to what you were saying. I feel more able to delve deeper and confident in dealing with self harm.”
Julia Clarke, St Paul’s RC School

The emphasis of this Course is on the emotional and psychological issues that precedes the actual self harm activity.

It takes YOU on a journey of discovering and uncovering the awareness of issues and circumstances that may trigger self harm activities in young people.

Additionally, the Course provides delegates with effective tools and strategies to support young people in dealing with self harm

“It has given me some practical strategies in order to work with pupils who self harm, and I now have a greater understanding of why pupils ‘self harm’”
Maureen Davis, St John Wall School

Finally, included in The Psychology of Self Harm & Behaviour Course are modules for you as a professional to identify how you can support yourself and parents better and differently within self harm and other aspects of your work with young people.

DATE: Wednesday 13 May 2009
Investment: £177 (Recession buster - £31 discount off 2008 price!!!)
Venue: Birmingham UK, TBC
Time: 09.30 – 4.00pm
Lunch and refreshments will be provided.

WHO SHOULD ATTEND?

Anyone working with children and young people, including:
Ö Teachers
Ö Social Workers
Ö Youth Workers
Ö LEA (Local Education Authority) staff
Ö Foster Carers
Ö Extended School Staff
Ö Child Protection Teams
Ö Probation Officers; Prison Officers
Ö Family Support Workers
Ö Connexions Staff
Ö Primary Care Trust
Ö Residential Staff
Ö Learning Mentors/Mentor
Ö Teaching Assistants/Support Staff
Ö C.A.M.S Staff

For further information contact Jennifer McLeod on
+44 (0) 121 551 1668 or email youngpeople@jennifermcleod.co.uk.

What do you do now?

Contact us now youngpeople@jennifermcleod.co.uk to BOOK this Course for yourself, staff and colleagues.

This is on a first come first served basis only

** Places are limited. Please book your place now to avoid disappointment**

Yours Sincerely
Jennifer McLeod
Group Managing Director

Jennifer McLeod is an International Speaker, Psychologist, Trainer, Inspirational Parent & Relationship Coach, and Author with over 20 years of people management experience and Creator of the Born To Win! Programme for Young People, and Creator of Easy Tiger Parent System™


“The Psychology of Self Harm & Behaviour Course has given me fresh insight and strategies to use and to know what to look out for. Thank you so much. I was very inspired by what you do and useful to hear about your own personal experiences.”
Jan Loxley, Primrose Hill Community School

Have you been LiBERATED yet?

NEW LIFE! NEW FREEDOM! NEW YOU!

With Inspirational Blessings
Jennifer McLeod
Born To Win! book series http://tinyurl.com/66punm
Creator of Easy Tiger Parents System(tm)
Creator of Born To Win! Programme for Young People(tm)
info@jennifermcleod.co.uk
www.stepup-international.co.uk
+44 (0) 121 551 1668

Who is more confused...?

Who is more confused…?

Legal Age For Young People to survive in UK

Who is more confused? Young people or adults (i.e. adults being government, society, parents, police, teachers)?

Young people are indeed more confused in today’s society more than ever before, but where does all this confusion come from?

One example of the origin of this confusion is regarding legal ages for young people to survive in the UK.

There are many things that I believe contradict the ages stipulated by legislation in order for young people to live and survive in today’s society in the UK.

Young people already receive a range of mixed messages every day from society which adds further to their confusion.

Have a look at the information below relating to legal ages for young people living in the UK and let me know what you think.

For instance,

At the age of 10, young people can:

- Be convicted of an offence, but not imprisoned

At the age of 12, young people can:

- From 12 years old young people can be incarcerated (not imprisoned) in special units, e.g. Local Authority Secure Units (LASUs)

At the age of 13, young people can:

- Be employed for a certain number of hours a week

At the age of 14, young people can:

- Go to the pub, but cannot drink or buy alcohol - Are responsible for wearing a seat belt

At the age of 15, young people can:

- Be a ‘juvenile offender’ in custody in juvenile units in Young Offender Institutions (YOI)

At the age of 16, young people can:

- Get a job
- Get married, with consent from one parent or legal guardian
- Have a baby
- Go to college? (UK legislations have changed recently where young people must stay on at school until they are 18).
- Have a licence to drive/ride a moped
- Buy a national lottery ticket
- Visit a young offender only with their own parents or with written permission from a responsible adult
- Age of consent for sexual relationships
- Claim social security benefit
- Be interviewed by the police with any responsible adult
- Choose their own doctor
- Work full-time
- Leave home with parents’ consent
- Drink wine or beer in a restaurant

At the age of 17, young people can:

- Go to college?
- Visit a young offender with a responsible adult
- Have a provisional driving licence for any vehicle except certain heavy ones
- Be interviewed by the police without parents or any other ‘responsible adult’ and therefore be treated as an adult
- Purchase an air rifle
- Have legal proceedings without involvement of parents or any other responsible adult
- Engage in street trading
- Leave home without parents’ consent

At the age of 18, young people can:

- Change their name
- Buy alcohol (only in some places. The permitted age to buy and consume alcohol varies across the UK from 18 – 25 years of age. Some retail outlets require young people as old as 25 to provide proof of their age)
- Go abroad to sing, play or perform professionally
- Appear before adult courts
- Go to a night club
- Sit on a jury
- Be a ‘young offender’ in custody Young Offender Institutions (YOI)
- Visit a young offender on their own
- Apply for a passport
- Act as an executor of a person’s will
- Be Deported from the UK even if they had, previous to becoming 18 years of age, been looked after by local authorities as a separated and vulnerable young person (separated children is the term used to describe children who are ‘outside their country and separated from their parents or legal or customary carers’)
- Be detained in a detention centre on attaining the age of 18, as an alternative to or prior to deportation as above.
- Buy cigarettes
- Leave school
- Get married without parents’ consent
- Vote
- Bet
- Own houses and land
- Be a blood donor
- Apply for a mortgage
- Buy fireworks
- Hold a licence to sell alcohol
- Drink alcohol in a pub

NB: Some ages may vary in Scotland.

Any surprises here for you? Let me know what you think.

Have you been LiBERATED yet?

NEW LIFE! NEW FREEDOM! NEW YOU!

With Inspirational Blessings
Jennifer McLeod

Born To Win! book series
Creator of Easy Tiger Parents System(tm)
Creator of Born To Win! Programme for Young People(tm)
youngpeople@jennifermcleod.co.uk
www.stepup-international.co.uk
+44 (0) 121 551 1668

Do you love me?

Do You Love ME?

This is the underlying and constant question that children and young people have running through their minds whether on a conscious or unconscious basis. We all have a need to be loved and children and young people are no exception to the rule.

Most often than not, however, children and young people may not be aware of this driving need and may act in ways which test their parents’ love for them. Again, they are generally unaware of why they are doing what they are doing because it is an unconscious act governed by the need to be and to feel loved. Though these actions may test some parents’ patience or drive some parents to despair, the trick for the parents is to look behind the behaviour at what children or young people might be trying to tell you. For instance, examples of behaviour might range from minor incidences like some children bedwetting again, creating ‘weird and wonderful’ fantasies that might seem real to them, hyperactivity, to more serious situations like stealing, mixing with the wrong crowd that leads them astray, substance misuse, self harm or even worse, suicide (sadly and steadily on the increase amongst young people and is the second or third highest cause of death for young people). The behaviour is a form of communication to you that tells you that something is going on and again, children especially, and young people may not be able to put into words how they are feeling. They just need that affirmative ‘yes’ in words and actions from their parents.

Where young people are concerned, they have so many challenges going on at this crucial stage of development in their lives, that it is so easy for them to get distracted and perhaps do things that they wouldn't normally do in an attempt to 'find themselves' or 'find me'. It is also a time for them naturally to want to explore and strive for their independence from their parents. Whilst this is a natural part of their growth, this stage still needs to be managed, whereby parents give young people more freedom a little at a time depending on their ability to manage this new found freedom and the responsibilities that it entails. Give them too much freedom at first and it will be difficult to claw it back later on if and when things go wrong. Children and young people of all ages need boundaries, irrespective of their behaviour and them telling you that they are not ‘a kid’ anymore. An Ofsted report 2007 UK reveals that young people believe that teachers treat them like young adults too soon. So whilst they want the extra freedom, they don’t want or are unable to cope with too much of it and therefore the increased responsibilities that it brings.

Another important point about a young person’s need to know that he or she is loved is the natural need for them to see their parents demonstrate that they love them. It might appear that they don’t want to be hugged anymore as they get older, but this is generally a façade that they put on at this stage of their development. Providing you are not ignoring their wishes by hugging them and embarrassing them in front of their friends, (my eldest is 17 years old and he openly initiates and gives me a hug in front of his friends), then always show your children affection. This can be as simple as tapping/touching them on their shoulders, arms, head or back as you walk past them.

Brian Tracy, a leading sales and personal development guru, sited an experiment called the Infant Death Syndrome where an experiment with newly born babies showed that half the babies in the experiment were not shown any form of affection and were just fed and changed when necessary. The other half of the babies in the experiment were also changed and fed, given extra attention, affection, hugged and played with. The difference in the development of the growth in the two sets of babies was so stark that the experiment had to be stopped, though too late, as the set of babies which didn’t receive the nurturing and affection, literally shriveled up and some of them actually died. A very potent example to illustrate the point above, as it is so easy to underestimate young people’s need for affection because of the contradictory behaviour that they portray.

If you watch Eastenders in the UK, one of the current storyline running is Lucy Beale running away from home. The episode Friday 02 May 2008 showed Stephen Beale telling Lucy that dad Ian and step mum Jane had almost forgotten about her to the extent where they were thinking of moving Stephen into Lucy’s room. The expression on Lucy’s face was one of obvious disappointment, even though she was the one that ran away.

So what do you do?

Give constant reassurance, praise, love, focused attention and affection and most importantly, LISTEN and give Lots of hugs.

This by no means, is not just about Positive Parenting or just being positive parents as this approach goes over and above that.

Have you been LiBERATED yet?

NEW LIFE! NEW FREEDOM! NEW YOU!

Leave your comments here about this article, and why not share this article with someone who might benefit from it?

With Inspirational Blessings
Jennifer McLeod
Born To Win! book series and Ebook http://www.lulu.com/; http://www.amazon.co.uk/
Creator of Easy Tiger Parents System(tm)
Creator of Born To Win! Programme for Young People(tm)
youngpeople@jennifermcleod.co.uk
http://www.stepup-international.co.uk/
+44 (0) 121 551 1668